. >> reporter: it's been less than three weeks since they lost 20 of their classmates and six educators, but thursday sandy hook elementary students were back in class. >> "watching them get off the bus, most of the kids were excited, they had seen friends, they hadn't see in awhile, they anxious to get into the hallways and meet up with the other kids, and you could see the teachers had the same response, they were quite excited to see the students." >> reporter: the site of the december shooting is still part of an ongoing investigation, so the former chalk hill middle school in nearby monroe was re- purposed, and renamed sandy hook. >> "a great deal of thought and effort and volunteer work to make this as seamless as possible." >> reporter: to give the students a sense of continuity, desks and other familiar objects were brought to their new school. a number of parents spent the day there, discussing security and other concerns with police and school officials. >> "it was like the first day of school, everybody, there were counselors, there were therapy dogs, all the parents, there w